


Home Again

by JoMo3



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Christmas Fluff, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-02
Updated: 2020-01-02
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:13:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,902
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22078282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JoMo3/pseuds/JoMo3
Summary: Christmas is here, and Eleven (with the Byers) are returning to Hawkins. Mike can't wait to see El and El can't wait to see Mike, but the absence of a particular someone is making this a sentimental holiday for El.
Relationships: Eleven | Jane Hopper & Jim "Chief" Hopper, Eleven | Jane Hopper/Mike Wheeler
Comments: 5
Kudos: 47





	Home Again

_ December, 1983 _

_ “What...is that?” _

_ Hopper paused in the doorway; one hand on the doorknob, the other hand tightly grasping the evergreen conifer he’d dragged in from outside. Looking from the tree to El (who’d asked the question), he responded, saying “You’re joking, right?” _

_ When the young girl’s face stayed the same, he said “It’s a Christmas tree.” _

_ “Chris muss tree,” she said slowly. _

_ “Don’t you know Christmas?” Hopper asked. When he saw El look down, embarrassed, he mentally berated himself, forgetting that she wasn’t a normal kid; that God knows what they did or did not do in that lab. That things like Christmas, birthdays, and traditions that were familiar to him were completely alien to El. _

_ It was day six of El living in the cabin, and something resembling trust was starting to form between Hopper and the young girl. He didn’t want to lose what little he’d gained by offending her lack of knowledge on Christmas. _

_ “Christmas is a holiday,” he finally said, lugging the tree all the way inside. Kicking the door shut behind him, he leaned it against a wall. “It’s a time of year,” he continued, “Where people get together with their family and friends; give each other presents. Gifts and stuff.” _

_ “Why?” _

_ “That,” Hopper said, dusting off his hat, “Could take a while to explain. Give me a hand with this thing, will ya?” _

_ El stood from where she sat on the couch, and helped Hopper pull the tree more into the room. He’d put out a stand before he’d left, and El held it as he carefully lowered the tree into it. When it was all done he stood, wiping his hands on his pants. _

_ “Alright. Now we toss some decorations on this thing, and we’ll be good to go.” _

_ Pretty soon, Christmas music was playing from the record player while the two decorated the tree. Early in the morning, Hopper had risen and found decorations in the storage space under the floor. Now, he and El worked together to place the bulbs and lights. Hopper had to redirect El a few times, after she started putting all of the bulbs in one area. With a little correction, the decorations were spread more evenly. _

_ When it was finally done, the two stood back and looked over their work. _

_ “Not too bad,” Hopper said, hands on his hips. _

_ “Pretty,” El admitted, admiring the lights. _

_ “I think we deserve something sweet, what do you say?” _

_ “Sweet?” _

_ “Yeah,” he said. “Like maybe some...hot chocolate?” _

_ El was still confused, but minutes later, after Hopper had made them two steaming cups, her frown was replaced with a smile, one of the few Hopper had seen since taking her in. _

_ Days later, El experienced her first Christmas morning. Hopper hadn’t gotten her much, but the clothes she received and the whipped cream Eggo waffles they had for breakfast were memorable. El decided that she liked Christmas. _

Present Day-

Eleven lay on her bed, eyes on her ceiling as she awaited sleep to come. It was Christmas Eve and, just like the story, not a creature was stirring all through the Byers’ house. Will had long gone to sleep; he’d spent most of the day helping Joyce out with things, knowing he would be gone tomorrow. Jonathan had gone to bed soon after his brother, after spending most of the day wrapping the last minute gifts he’d bought. Joyce had been last, no doubt tired from the double shifts she’d been working recently to make sure all of her children-El included-received something special this holiday.

However, sleep seemed to be evading Eleven for some reason. Every time she closed her eyes, it seemed as if they would pop right back open of their own accord. Maybe it was the anticipation of tomorrow; opening gifts with her (new) family, driving into Hawkins and seeing her friends again, seeing  _ Mike _ again....

_ Mike _ …

She couldn’t wait to run into her boyfriend’s arms, feel his arms around her, and bury her face into his chest. She couldn’t wait to snuggle under a blanket with him and watch Christmas movies while they caught up with their friends, then go on to eat some of Mrs. Wheeler’s Christmas cooking that Mike had been raving about.

But there was one thing she wasn’t looking forward to:

A Christmas without Hopper.

There wasn’t a day that went by where she didn’t miss him, but lately she’d been thinking about him even more.

Maybe it was because she was finally returning to Hawkins tomorrow; the only real place she felt was home. As much as she’d come to love the town (despite its eccentricities) she knew many things would remind her of Hopper.

Or maybe it was because of the holiday itself; after all, Hopper had been the one to introduce her to what had become her favorite holiday. And this would be her first Christmas without the man she saw as her father. She loved the Byers with all her heart. But she missed she and Hopper’s traditions; drinking mugs of hot chocolate, decorating the tree in the small space of the cabin, and watching  _ Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid _ after their Christmas dinner.

Despite this feeling of sorrow, she knew the day would still be special:

There’d be presents.

There’d be family.

There’d be friends.

There’d be Mike.

And, knowing she had  _ that _ to look forward to, she finally drifted off to sleep.

In Hawkins, Mike Wheeler sat in the basement, wrapping the last few gifts he hadn’t gotten to. The past few days had been busy for him, but it’d all be worth it tomorrow-when Christmas came, and when  _ she _ came; El.

It had been 26 days since he’d seen her last ( _ but who’s counting? _ ) on Thanksgiving, when he and Nancy had made the drive to see the Byers. And now, she and Will were returning for the holiday.

Mike already had the day planned out: his family would awake in the morning, open gifts and have a small breakfast. His friends would come over sometime after noon, and await El and Will’s arrival. When the Byers clan arrived in Hawkins, the group would hang out here in the basement, catching up and exchanging gifts. Eventually, they’d splinter off-Lucas’s grandparents usually came to town for Christmas dinner; Dustin and his mom always ate together. He wasn’t sure yet what Max’s plans were; the group’s Zoomer has been looking forward to a Californian Christmas with her dad, but it’d been nixed at the last minute. He knew she didn’t want to have dinner with her mom and stepdad, with Billy’s death still looming over the family.

With his friends gone, Christmas dinner would come next, and Mike was already looking forward to his mom’s macaroni and cheese. Sometime after dinner he hoped he would get some time alone with El and give her her gift.

The gift which sat next to him, the gift which he’d been working tirelessly to afford; a silver necklace he’d bought from Hawkins’ lone jewelry store. Both he and Lucas had wanted something nice for their girlfriends, so the two boys had been making the rounds in their neighborhood, shoveling driveways and sidewalks. It’d been hard work, but both boys knew it’d all be worth it when they saw the looks on their girlfriend’s faces.

My, how things have changed.

A few years ago he couldn’t have imagined that he would go from Mike “Frog Face” Wheeler, the AV Club President that played Dungeons & Dragons with his friends every weekend to his current status. Yes, he was still a nerd, but the Dungeons & Dragons campaigns were becoming few and far between, and he and most of his friends  _ actually _ had girlfriends now; once upon a time, that would’ve been considered a myth in the halls of Hawkins Middle.

And although Max was a valuable member of the Party ( _ even if she did get on his nerves from time to time _ ), and Suzie-whom he still hadn’t met-seemed perfect for Dustin, Mike knew his girlfriend was the best of the bunch. She’d long ago taken Mike’s heart, and he suspected she always would.

Finally done wrapping, Mike glanced at the clock- _ 11:11 _ , and smiled at the coincidence as he picked up the gifts. He left El and Will’s gifts on the game table, knowing the group would trade gifts tomorrow.

_ Tomorrow _ , he thought to himself.

He couldn’t wait.

Christmas morning at the Byers house went fast; there was gift unwrapping and a warm meal made courtesy of Jonathan. But pretty soon the three children were dressed and grabbing everything they needed for their return trip to Hawkins.

“Drive slow,” Joyce called as she made her way from the kitchen. Jonathan, Will, and El were next to the door, putting on coats and slipping into boots and shoes.

“Mom, I will,” Jonathan said, assuring her (it was only the third time in the last 5 minutes she’d reminded him).

“And it’s supposed to snow tonight, so if it’s really bad, stay there,” Joyce said, repeating another thing she’d recently said.

“Yeah, mom, I got it,” Jonathan said, putting his hands into his coat pocket. “Are you sure you’re going to be okay here by yourself?”

“I’ll be fine,” Joyce answered, hugging her oldest son. “Patti invited me over to have dinner with her family, you just worry about those roads.” Turning to Will, she hugged him next. “Tell the Wheelers I said hi,” she told him. Turning to El, she pulled the girl close, hugging her tightly. “Have fun with Mike, sweetie,” she said.

El nodded, hugging her back. 

“Now go,” Joyce said, letting go of El. “And drive slowly,” she told Jonathan.

“I know, mom,” he said, kissing her cheek. “I’ll call you when I get there, alright?”

She nodded goodbye, and the three travelers-Jonathan, Will, and El-made their way out into the cold and into Jonathan’s car. After taking a few minutes to warm up, the group was on their way.

Will and Eleven sat in the backseat, the gifts for their friends sitting in the passenger seat up front next to Jonathan. Soft rock music played out of the radio as the car made its way out of town.

Eleven watched the trees pass by as snowflakes fell outside, and wondered what Mike was doing at the moment. Was he thinking about her? What gifts had he opened this morning? She hoped he liked her gifts; she’d bought him a sweater and framed a picture of her for him to keep. She wondered what her other friends were up to as well-was Max okay? El had last talked to her friend a week ago, and her bestie hadn’t been looking forward to the holiday. How were Lucas and Dustin, and their families?

Her thoughts eventually drifted to Hopper as Jonathan pulled onto the freeway. She wondered, if he was still here, how they’d be celebrating the holiday today. Would he have had to work? Would she still get to see Mike? Would they have had whipped cream Eggos on Christmas morning and hot chocolate with extra marshmallows after setting up the tree? Thinking about Hopper got her thinking about the cabin, which made her think about what she wanted to do today. Would Mike be okay with what she wanted to do? Would she be brave enough to do it? Would…

“El?”

Will’s voice pulled her from her thoughts, and she turned to the boy next to her. “Yes?”

“Are you okay?”

“Yes,” she answered, nodding her head.

“I never asked you, have you ever gone sledding?”

“Sledding? No.”

Will grinned. “We used to go all the time, on the hill where Dustin put Cerebro. I remember one time, Lucas was sliding down and hit a rock or something, and he went  _ flying _ off his snow saucer,” he finished, laughing.

“Snow saucer?” she asked, confused.

“It’s a sled, but it’s, like...flat.”

“Oh.”

“It’d be cool if we could go sledding when we get there, but…” He shrugged. “I don’t think there’ll be time.” A little quieter, he added, “Besides, we’re probably too old to go sledding anyway.”

“Maybe we can ask everyone,” El suggested, trying to lift Will’s spirits.

“Yeah, maybe,” he agreed, nodding as a hint of a smile came to his face.

El returned the smile before she turned back to looking out the window.

_ December, 1984 _

_ The sound of snow crunching under boots outside was the telltale sign that Hopper was back. El, sitting on the couch, walkie in hand as she talked with her now-boyfriend Mike, smiled even wider, knowing it was officially her favorite time of year. _

_ “I have to go,” she said into the walkie. “Hopper’s here.” _

_ “Alright,” Mike said. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow?” _

_ “Tomorrow,” she agreed before signing off. Glancing towards the door, she used her powers to undo the locks, opening the door just as Hopper arrived, hand raised to do the secret knock. _

_ “Thanks,” he said, stepping in and kicking snow off his boots before closing the door behind him. Looking at El, he asked “Did you eat?” _

_ “Yes,” she answered with a nod. _

_ Hopper paused. “Waffles or real food?” _

_ El hesitated as well, glancing at the empty plate on the table that had remnants of her earlier Eggos. _

_ Hopper rolled his eyes. “Fine. You get out the ornaments, I’ll warm something up.” _

_ So over the next ten minutes, Eleven got the ornaments from their hiding space under the cabin, while Hopper went about warming up two microwave dinners. The food was eaten quickly, while Hopper talked about his day at work and quizzed El on the homework she was to have done. El told him about her talk with Mike, and what had happened on her soap operas; Hopper did a decent job of pretending to listen. When the food was eaten and the table was cleared, the two went to work on the tree Hop had put up yesterday when he’d returned late from duty. _

_ It was a few days after the Snowball and El was, for the most part, happy. Christmas was in a few days, after all. During her stay with Hopper she’d run through a year’s worth of holidays: Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Fourth of July, Thanksgiving; but Christmas had quickly become her favorite. The magic of the day, watching the snow fall, and the fact that it was the first holiday she’d been introduced to made Christmas special to her. She was also still flying high from dancing with Mike a few nights ago, which only added to her happy mood. That night had been one of the best of her life; the lights, the music, kissing Mike again… _

_ There was a small part of her, though, that was a bit peeved (a word Hopper had recently taught her) that she couldn’t go and see her new boyfriend and friends. As much as El loved Christmas, the gift she wanted more than anything was to see her friends. But whenever she brought it up, Hopper was quick to shake his head, saying “Not yet; it’s too dangerous.” _

_ Why was it dangerous, she wanted to ask. The Gate had been closed, the demodogs were dead, the Mind Flayer was gone, and the lab was shut down; what was he worried about? _

_ So she decided she’d take a break from asking for a while, and maybe see if she could see her friends again in the new year. _

_ When the tree was finally decorated, the two stepped back and, similar to the previous year, admired their work. _

_ “Pretty,” El muttered, again admiring the blinking lights. _

_ “Yep,” Hopper said, ruffling her hair. “Good job.” _

_ Looking up at him, she asked, “Hot...chocolate?” _

_ “I thought you’d never ask,” he said, grinning. _

_ Pretty soon the mugs were made, and the two of them sat on the couch, sipping warm drinks as they watched television. _

_ During one of the commercial breaks, Hopper muted the television, causing El to look at him, confused. _

_ “So I’ve been thinking,” the chief began. When El didn’t say anything, he continued. “About giving you an early Christmas gift.” _

_ Eleven tilted her head. “It’s not Christmas yet.” _

_ “Yeah, that’s why I said early; listen...I know you want to see your friends…” _

_ El placed her mug on the coffee table, sitting up straighter as a smile began to grow on her face. “Yes?” _

_ “And all I’m saying is maybe...maybe we can start, on a trial basis…” _

_ Eleven didn’t know what “trial basis” meant, but the tone in Hopper’s voice told her that he was changing his mind, and she all but leapt over to the big man, hugging him tightly. _

_ “Thank you,” she muttered. _

_ Hopper chuckled, hugging her back. “I think you’d better wait and find out what ‘trial basis’ means, kid.” _

_ The rules were explained, and two days later, on Christmas Day, El and Hopper woke up, opened the few gifts he’d bought for her and she gave him the one gift she’d been able to put together (thanks to Joyce). After a breakfast of whipped cream Eggos, Els’ friends came over, spending most of the afternoon talking and trading gifts. Hopper tried not to roll his eyes too hard at seeing Mike and El, snuggled together on the couch as they conversed with the other kids. _

_ Her friends left in the evening, leaving Hopper and El to eat dinner, then sip more cocoa as they watched Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. _

_ El loved it. _

Present Day-

The Wheeler house was busy: Karen was in the kitchen, working on dinner for the soon-to-be-full house. Ted Wheeler, tasked with vacuuming the living room, had instead found something on TV to watch. Holly Wheeler was in the front room, playing with the Barbie Dream House she’d opened hours ago. Both Mike and Nancy were in their respective bedrooms, taking a few more minutes to be sure they looked good for when they saw their significant others this afternoon.

Mike stood in front of his bedroom mirror, trying to make some sense of his hair. Behind him on his bed lay the presents he’d opened this morning, ready to show his friends when they came over.

Speaking of which…

His Supercomm, sitting on his bedside table, crackled to life. “Mike?” came Lucas’s voice. “You there?”

Mike scooped it up. “I’m here.”

“We’re on our way over. Meet you at the basement door.”

“Copy,” Mike said, clicking off. He grabbed a few of his gifts and made his way out of his room, descending down the stairs and through the kitchen. “My friends are coming over,” Mike called to his mom.

“Is your room clean?” she asked.

“Yes,” he said, which was only half-true.

Getting down into the basement, he clicked on the lights before opening the door and, sure enough, there were his friends-Lucas, Dustin, and Max.

“Son of a bitch, it’s cold out there,” Dustin said as he pushed past Mike and into the warmth of the basement.

“Merry Christmas,” Lucas said, punching Mike’s shoulder as he walked in, Max right behind him.

“Are they here yet?” the Zoomer asked as Mike closed the door behind her.

“No, it’s probably going to be another few hours,” he answered. “Did you guys bring your gifts?”

Lucas and Dustin held up their backpacks, indicating their gifts were inside.

“I left them at home,” Max said. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Mike said, shrugging. Looking to the group, he asked “What do you guys want to do?”

They decided to watch TV while they waited, all of them talking about the gifts they’d received that morning. After an hour of channel surfing, the group decided to take turns playing Mike’s Atari, breaking in some of the new games he’d received that morning.

Sometime in the mid-afternoon, the basement door opened, and feet began to come downstairs. Mike ignored it at first, figuring it was probably his mom or dad coming to get something from the basement. It wasn’t until Lucas looked up from his spot on the floor and broke out into a grin, saying “Byers!” that Mike finally looked up. Sure enough, Will was making his way downstairs, a big smile on his face.

The group stopped their game and stood, running over and giving Will a big group hug as they talked over themselves.

“How are you?”

“Dude, you got taller.”

“How was your Christmas?”

“Where’s El?”

Mike, of course, asked the last question, and before Will could answer, a soft voice said “Mike?” from the stairs. All eyes turned to the bottom step in time to see El, wearing a red sweater and a small smile as her eyes locked on her boyfriend’s.

And all of a sudden it was as if no one else were in the basement as El ran to Mike, nearly jumping into his arms as they embraced.

“I missed you,” she said into his chest, breathing him in.

“I missed you, too,” he said, holding her close.

She pulled away, slightly, and their lips came together as El cupped Mike’s face, thinking  _ I’m here. We’re together. _ Mike kissed her back, smiling as he wrapped his arms around her waist, finally glad to be holding El again. If he had his say, he’d never let her go.

They were so lost in each other that they would’ve kept right on kissing if Dustin hadn’t said “Alright, guys, jeez.”

Both El and Mike, realizing they weren’t alone, sheepishly pulled away, cheeks turning pink as they held hands.

“Gosh, Mike, are you going to be on her face the whole time she’s here?” Max asked, coming over and hugging El. El let go of Mike’s hand, hugging Max back as the rest of the boys came over, giving El a hug as well.

“When did you guys get here?” Mike asked after everyone had their hugs in, his hand absentmindedly finding Eleven’s.

“Just now,” Will said. “We were about to knock, but your dad saw us when we were getting out of the car and let us in.”

“Where’s Jonathan?” Dustin asked.

“With Nancy,” Will said, rolling his eyes. Then looking to his friends, he asked “So? What do you guys want to do?”

Within minutes it was just like the old days, with the boys teasing each other, talking about movies and video games, and catching up. Max and El sat on the couch at first, catching up as well before Mike made his way over, taking a seat next to El before she cuddled into his side, head on his shoulder. Gifts were soon exchanged between the group, except for Mike’s gift to El and vice versa; both knew they wanted to exchange theirs privately. Over the next three hours, the group slowly began to splinter out. Dustin was the first to leave, off to have dinner with his mother. Lucas left soon after, as he needed to shower and change clothes before his grandparents came. El had invited Max to stay for dinner, and after both Mike and Max got the okay from their moms, the redhead was more than happy to stay.

The remaining Party members watched  _ How the Grinch Stole Christmas _ in the basement, Mike and El huddled together under a blanket as they watched, with Max and Will on the floor.

Every so often Mike or El would whisper something to the other, just happy being in the same room as one another again. Neither wanted to think about how much time they did or did not have; instead they thought about how glad they were to be together.

During a commercial break, Max went to use the bathroom and Will went to go see his brother. El slowly sat up, facing Mike in the process.

“You okay?” he asked her.

She nodded, but Mike could tell something was bothering her. “El?” he asked, playing with her fingers. “What is it?”

“I want...to go to the...cabin,” she answered slowly.

Mike frowned. “Why?”

El paused, not sure how to answer that. Thinking about Hopper lately and all of their traditions together had made her sentimental, wanting something to remind her of her father. She didn’t know what might still be up at the cabin after the Mind Flayer destroyed it, but a part of her wanted to check. She wasn’t exactly sure how to convey this to Mike, though. Luckily, the two were always great at reading each other, and Mike, after seeing El seemingly struggle to say what she wanted, nodded his head. “Okay, we can go,” he told her. “It’ll have to be fast, though. It’s almost time for dinner.”

“Thank you, Mike,” she said, giving him a quick kiss.

They got Max and Will to cover for them, and Jonathan and Nancy drove them up to the cabin as snow began to fall.

El felt her breath catch in her throat when they arrived at the cabin; or at least what was left of it after the Mind Flayer’s attack in July. The roof was caved in, and two of the walls were all but demolished. Windows were shattered, and from what she could see of the inside, it looked like a mess.

Still, El thought, it was home.

Mike, sitting next to her in the backseat, wasn’t sure what to do. El hadn’t said anything about  _ why _ she needed to come here; he could just tell it was important that she do so.  _ Did she want to go in? Was there something she needed? _ He wanted to ask but he didn’t want to rush her.

Finally, El turned to him. “I want to go look for something.”

“Okay,” Mike nodded. “Do you want to go by yourself, or do you…”

She took his hand, pulling him with her. “Come,” she answered.

Mike closed the door behind them, and the two walked the few steps from the car to the cabin, their boots crunching the snow beneath them as they walked. Pausing at the door, Mike frowned. “I don’t know if it’ll open,” he told Eleven. Part of the smashed roof was pressing down on the doorframe. Still, letting go of El’s hand, Mike pushed on the door to no avail.

El started to raise her hand to push open the door, but stopped, remembering the loss of her powers.

“Come on,” Mike told her. “We’ll find another way.”

The other way ended up being back by the kitchen, where they were able to climb some of the debris to get inside.

Once she was in, staring at what was left, El again didn’t know what she wanted. There wasn’t much; the Mind Flayer had made sure of that. The lowered rooftop wouldn’t let her into her bedroom, and furniture was strewn everywhere around them.

“What do you want to look for?” Mike asked after a minute. El decided that she had to do  _ some _ thing; not only was it (probably) dangerous to be in here, but it was still snowing, dinner would be served soon, and she knew Mike had to be freezing. So…

“Under,” El said, pointing to the floor.

Mike followed where she pointed. “Under the floor?” When El nodded, Mike still looked confused. “How do we get down there?”

“Help me,” El said, attempting to slide a half-broken chair. With some effort, the two slowly slid it a few feet. Mike then watched as his girlfriend stooped down and, after some hesitation, pulled a floorboard up, exposing a crawlspace.

“Wow,” Mike said. “I didn’t know that was down there.” El gingerly went inside, disappearing from Mike’s point of view for a moment. When she returned, she was struggling with a box that she held against her chest. Mike reached down and took the box from her before helping El out of the hole.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Christmas,” she told him, opening the box and revealing Christmas tree bulbs, lights, and other ornaments that were, for the most part, broken. El took a minute to dig through, seemingly searching for something until her hand emerged with two pieces of a broken bulb. “Okay,” she said to Mike, slipping the pieces into her coat pocket.

Mike was still confused, but decided it was time to go. So, taking El’s hand, he led her back to Jonathan’s car.

Dinner was ready by the time they returned to the Wheeler’s home, and Max and Will did a good job of keeping Mike and El “there” during their absence. The ride back from the cabin had been quiet; El seemed satisfied with what she’d retrieved while Mike wanted to ask about it, instead deciding El would say something when she was ready to.

When they finally sat down to eat, El was glad to see that Mike was right, Mrs. Wheeler’s cooking was delicious. The two (as well as Will and Max) helped themselves to as much food as they could eat, then topped it off with slices of cheesecake and pecan pies.

Soon after everyone had had their fill, Max was picked up by her mom but not before giving a long hug to her best friend, El. Will went off to talk to Jonathan about their trip home, and that was when Mike took El’s hand and brought her to the basement for their own, private gift exchange.

El took a seat on the couch, holding the gift she was to give Mike as he sat down next to her.

“Merry Christmas,” he told her, as the two swapped gift.

Eleven opened hers first, and felt tears stinging her eyes as she pulled out the silver necklace Mike had bought her. “Mike,” she began, looking to him with love in her eyes.

“Do you like it?”

She nodded. “I  _ love _ it.” El moved closer, kissing him. “Thank you,” she said when she pulled away. Turning away from him, she asked “Put it on me?”

El pulled her hair up, and Mike clasped the necklace behind her neck, placing a kiss where the ends met and causing El to giggle. She turned back around and handed him her gift to him. Mike opened it, and smiled at the photo the two of them had taken at Thanksgiving, sitting on the couch in Mrs. Byers’ living room.

“I didn’t have a lot of money,” El admitted. “I…”

“El,” he said, cutting her off. “It’s awesome. I love it.” El beamed, and the two hugged. Once they let go, Mike hesitantly asked “Can I ask you something?”

“Yes,” she said, nodding.

“What did you get from the cabin?”

“Oh.” She paused for a second, then reached into her coat, which she’d left on the couch, and pulled out the two pieces of the broken ornament. Mike looked it over; it was a globe adorned with a snow-covered scene. Atop the two parts was the phrase  _ Christmas 1983 _ .

“Hopper,” El said, smiling. “Hopper got it for me on my first Christmas. I wanted...something from him.” She spent a few minutes telling him about her previous Christmases with Hopper.

Mike nodded, understanding. “I can fix it,” he told her.

“You can?” she asked, surprised.

“Yeah. My dad has a glue gun down here somewhere…” he stood, going to where Ted Wheeler kept his tools. After a few minutes of searching, Mike returned with what he’d been searching for. Taking the bulb from Eleven, he spent the next few moments gingerly piecing it back together before holding it up for El’s approval.

“Thank you Mike,” she said, wrapping him in another hug. Mike held the bulb above them, careful to make sure it didn’t break.

“It needs to dry off,” he explained. “But in a few hours it should be fine.”

El took it from him, the stinging sensation of upcoming tears threatening her again. “I love you, Mike,” she said.

“I love you, too,” he said back.

A few minutes later, Will came downstairs with good news: they were staying the night. Mrs. Byers had called and suggested that due to the snow, they stay the night in Hawkins. To be honest, Jonathan knew he could probably make the drive just fine. But if his mom insisted, he’d stay the night at his girlfriend’s house. Arrangements were made: Jonathan would sleep on the couch in the living room, El would sleep on the basement’s couch, and Will would, in a sleeping bag, stay in Mike’s room.

Once everyone was ready for bed, Mike reluctantly said goodnight to El before going up to his room with Will. The two boys sat awake for half an hour talking, but after awhile, Will could tell his friend’s attention was elsewhere.

Finally, Will sat up and asked “Why don’t you go down to the basement?”

“What? No, I’m...Besides, she’s probably asleep by now.”

Will scoffed. “If I know El, she’s probably still up, thinking about you.”

Mike sighed. “But I’d have to pass Jonathan to get down there, and…”

Now Will chuckled. “Trust me, Mike, Jonathan’s not on the couch.”

“What? But where would he...ew, gross.” Now Mike sat up. “You’re sure you’re okay?”

“If it’ll get you to stop moping, then yeah.”

Mike climbed out from under the covers and made his way to the door. “Thanks, Will,” he said over his shoulder before opening the door.

And he stopped, surprised to see El standing on the other side, about to knock.

“El?” Mike asked.

“Hi,” she said quietly. “I...couldn’t sleep.”

“Me either,” he admitted. “I was coming down to see you.”

“Do you want to come to the basement?” she asked.

“ _ I’ll _ go to the basement,” Will said, getting up. “Because this is getting ridiculous.” Standing, he said goodbye to his friends before leaving the room.

El smiled at Mike, stepping into his room as he closed the door behind her. “You can have the bed,” he told her. “I’ll take the sleeping bag.”

El nodded, but before getting into bed, hugged her boyfriend again. “Thank you for the gifts,” she told him.

“You’re welcome,” he said. “Thank you for mine.” Over his shoulder, El saw her gift to Mike sitting on his nightstand.

Putting their foreheads together, she said “I don’t want it to be tomorrow.”

Mike chuckled. “It’s not, yet. But I know what you mean.”

El sighed, breathing in Mike’s scent again.

“I love you,” he whispered.

“I love you, too,” she whispered back before raising her head to kiss him once more. The two reluctantly got into their beds for the night and eventually fell asleep.

When Karen Wheeler woke up in the morning to make breakfast, she was surprised to see Jonathan was, indeed, sleeping on the couch. Grinning to herself, she wondered how he had made it out of Nancy’s room in time. When she decided to go check on El in the basement, that was when she got another surprise; Will was asleep where the girl was supposed to be. Karen found El exactly where she figured she’d be-in Mike’s bedroom. Her son was asleep in the sleeping bag, while El slept in his bed. They must have been holding hands at some point in the night, because both of their hands lay outstretched towards the other, limp with sleep.

The adorableness of it all overtaking her, Karen decided to let them be for now. They’d earned it.


End file.
